Wedding

There is no denying that the best man plays a massive role in any wedding. After all, they are responsible for bringing the fun and the laughter to the occasion. It is a big undertaking! However, there are some best men that take their role a bit too far. From crude jokes to irresponsible behaviour, we have seen it all. With that being said, in this blog post, we are going to take a look at the top don’ts for best men. This is a must-read for any best man. Plus, if you are the bride or groom, and you are worried that your best man could end up falling into one of the traps mentioned below, it is probably a good idea to have a chat with him before the big day!

DON’T forget the rings

There is only one place to begin, and this is with the wedding rings. We have all watched those comedy films whereby the best man turns up and he goes to put his hand in his suit pocket only to release that the rings are no longer there. Yes, this may be funny on the big screen but it is certainly not funny in real life.

DON’T perform your speech without rehearsing it in front of someone

A lot of best men are naturally funny. There are then those that think they are funny, but they are the only person laughing. We all know someone who falls into this category. While you want everyone’s reaction to be natural, it is a good idea to practice the best man’s speech in front of at least one other person. You need to see how they react. You also need to prepare your delivery.

DON’T forget to sand the bottom of your groom’s new shoes

As the best man, you are responsible for making sure that everything goes as well as possible for the groom on his special day. Because of this, one of your duties is to sand the bottom of your groom’s new shoes. The last thing you want is for him to slip down the aisle with his new bride on his arm!

DON’T let any harm happen to the groom on his stag do

Yes, you want to embarrass the groom. Yes, you want it to be the best weekend of his life. But he is not going to thank you if he has to turn up to his wedding with green hair or half an eyebrow, and you can be certain the bride will not be thanking you either!

DON’T mention ex-girlfriends in the speech

The best man’s speech is supposed to be one of the highlights of the wedding. However, it’s not going to be a highlight if you start talking about ex-girlfriends and ‘conquests’ – this is a big no! You can see some best man speech examples online if you need some inspiration regarding what you should and should not include. Also, don’t forget to include the bride in your speech. She is the main attraction!

DON’T get the groom too drunk the night before the wedding

It is likely that you are going to have a few drinks the night before the wedding, but make sure that it is only a few. A hungover groom is never a good idea on the most important day of his life, and you can rest assured that you will get the blame. Moreover, make sure you are not ‘that person’ at the wedding who is way too drunk. Yes, enjoy yourself and be the life and soul of the party. Yes, embrace the cocktails, beer, and whatever else is on offer. But do be responsible!

So there you have it: the top don’ts for any best men on the wedding day and during the build-up to it. Hopefully, you now feel more prepared regarding what you should do in the build-up to your best friend’s special day. If you are the groom, and you are fearful that your best man could end up making one of the blunders that have been talked about above, you should definitely speak to him beforehand. After all, the last thing you want is for your guests to spend their entire day talking about how the best man discussed all the groom’s conquests in his speech – never a good idea!

The wedding ring is the first gift given between a couple on their wedding day. The wedding ring is a symbol of promise of forever love. It is the one thing that shows the rest of the world you are married. Did you know that the traditional wedding vows are symbolised within the wedding ring.

Never ending circle

Traditionally a wedding ring is a plain band, that is a circle. It has no beginning and no end. It is a symbol that marriage has no end, it a promise to each other of love and commitment. Although some believe that the wedding ring is a symbol of two halves coming together to form a perfect band of never ending love.

Fourth finger of love

Have you ever wondered why the wedding ring sits on the fourth finger? Well, the ancient Egytians and the Romans believed that the vein in the fourth finger flowed straight to your heart. Therefore the wedding ring sat on that finger with love flowing straight to your heart. Which in fact it does not, but is very romantic to believe it does flow love straight to your heart.

Over the years it has become traditional that the fourth ring is now known and the ring finger. Now many people will not wear a ring on that finger unless it is as a symbol of love and commitment to someone.

Modern wedding rings

Over the years peoples views on weddings rings changed, it was always the lady that wore a wedding ring and not the man. Wedding rings in the past have been made from twigs, leather, stone, metal anything that could be formed into a ring. Over the years it has changes along with peoples status of class and wealth.

Modern rings now are made from gold, silver or platinum, with titanium being very popular. Some people are even having there wedding ring tattooed onto them. Wedding rings now are often set with stones, or shaped to fit around an engagement ring. Anything goes when it comes to brides and grooms choosing their wedding rings.

Wedding rings for men

Traditionally men did not wear wedding rings. My Dad did not have one for a couple of reasons, one they couldn’t afford it and also in his job wearing a ring was a hazard.

Men have been seen in years gone by as the dominant and the wedding ring was often seen as an ownership of their wife and in some cases wives. Men did not need to carry the symbol of marriage with them.

However, this changed quickly during the second World War, with millions of men heading out to war. They opted to wear wedding rings to have a connection to their wife at all times. Since the war, men wearing a wedding ring has become normal, with very few men now not having a wedding ring.

When I got married, we both choose a plain 18ct White Gold ring. A standard band, no shapes, no stones a very traditional wedding ring. Even though my wedding ring is very simple it is perfect to me. I personally wouldn’t have a wedding band set with stones, I like the never ending band and it’s meaning.

What does your wedding ring look like? Do you have stones in yours or is it a tattoo?

When you’re planning a wedding, there’s always going to be the things that are important to you, and the things that aren’t. But no matter where you stand with each element of the occasion, you still have to make decisions. From what meat to serve at the wedding breakfast to the kind of flowers you should carry, there can be a lot. And not everything will be fun! But, if there’s one area of the wedding planning that you should be able to have fun with, it’s the wedding entertainment. Whether you realise it or not, the music that you play throughout your wedding will matter. It can really set the tone of the day, and add to (or take away from) your own experience on the day! So let’s take a look at thing to consider when you’re making your choices.

Walking To It

So the first thing that you’ll want to think about, is the music that you walk to. Whether you’re planning on being traditional here or not, you’ll need to walk down some kind of isle or space, to meet your fiancé at the end. You may want the wedding march, or a favourite song of yours. Either way, make sure that you’re happy walking to it. The tempo of the music will affect how quickly or slowly you walk, so make sure that you’re comfortable with it when you decide.

The Relevance

Next, you’re going to want to make sure that the songs you’re selecting throughout the day have some relevance to you as a couple. Now, this could even be said about the song that you walk down the isle too, but it matters the most when it comes to your first dance. Choosing a song that is important to you should be key here.

The Different Times

Another really important factor is to remember that you’re going to need to play music at different times throughout the day. Maybe you want background music at the wedding breakfast, or even when your guests are mingling in between the ceremony and the breakfast. So will you want to play a record or have an orchestra playing?

What You Want To Dance To

Then, you need to make sure that you’re picking out the music that you really want to dance too. Think about weddings bands that you like, like The Smooth Criminals, that can do songs you like. But also consider any key records that you love and will want to dance to at your wedding!

What Your Guests Might Want

Last but not least, you may also want to spend some time thinking about what your guests may also want too. While, of course, you’re going to want to be able to enjoy the day, you do also have to be sure that your guests are going to get up and dance. Nobody wants an empty dance floor. So, as you’re pulling together song choices for the DJ, make sure that you get a good mix. Go for your favourites, as well as some older songs for the oldies, and then a good mix of genres in there too.